Peer comparisons can help revenue cycle leaders review their performance through an external lens, set targets and motivate teams, as well as provide informed answers to questions. Checking revenue cycle performance against others is important to understanding how performance ability may be affected by what is happening in the industry at large.

Consider for a moment a situation where you slightly reduce days in accounts receivable (A/R). This achievement, although positive, may not seem like much. But it quickly can take on much more significance once you recognize that you have achieved this shift at a time when most other organizations are struggling just to maintain status quo or are even seeing their days climb. By knowing how your performance compares with others in the industry, you get a much deeper understanding of where your strengths and opportunities lie.

HFMA’s MAP Keys for Measurement and MAP App for Benchmarking Performance Created by and for healthcare leaders, HFMA’s MAP sets the standard for revenue cycle excellence in healthcare. The centerpiece is the MAP Keys, the key performance indicators in revenue cycle for both hospitals and physician practices. Widely adopted across the industry, MAP Keys ensure consistent, unbiased reporting, allowing users to track progress against goals and compare performance to peer group institutions nationwide. Using MAP Keys, healthcare professionals can improve business intelligence, strengthen management, identify problem areas and decide where to focus for improvement.

MAP App is HFMA’s premier web based application that helps hospitals, health systems, and physician practices improve performance throughout the revenue cycle. MAP App allows organizations to track monthly performance using HFMA’s industry-standard metrics (MAP Keys), compare performance to peer groups and the industry, and connect to the best practices in the industry. The benchmarking tool enables providers to compare performance against different customized peer groups and to see trends from MAP App’s database of over 500 institutions from around the U.S. and across multiple vendors.

Remember, benchmarking against others can be useful in that it provides a reality check for the goals you may set. Knowing that you are at a higher level of performance than experienced in the past isn’t enough. How confident are you that positive movement can be maintained? Benchmarking helps leaders better understand true improvement potential so they can create achievable stretch goals to move performance to great. Meaningful targets are at the crux of staff’s trust in the process and commitment to performance improvement.

Be sure to utilize HFMA’s tools for measuring and benchmarking – they will certainly help enhance your own processes, ensuring that you continue to leverage your strengths and gain a better understanding of available opportunities.

About State Collection Service, Inc.

Since 1949, State Collection Service has provided quality collection service to countless healthcare organizations.

Through experience and innovation, State Collection Service has grown to become a tremendously credible and nationally-recognized collection agency offering services from pre-registration to bad debt. It is upon the basis of ethical behavior and a dedication to integrity that each State Collection Service employee works to uphold the company’s vision – Partnerships for a Lifetime.

*This article first appeared in “A State Collection Service, Inc. Newsletter Volume 21, Issue 1, First Quarter 2015”